We left Naples on Saturday the 26th, bypassed Marco Island and the Cape Romano Shoals, and then turned in through the Ten Thousand Islands to Everglades City and the famous Rod and Gun Club, where unbeknown to us a wedding was about to begin on the grounds. In fact, the father of the bride very graciously caught a line for us (since they don’t monitor VHF and didn’t answer the phone upon our approach). What a neat little town and a worthwhile stopover. We did hit bottom once (we draw 3.5 – 4 ft. depending on how much fuel and water is weighing us down) on our way back out the channel the next morning at low tide. Sharon and Ken Vogel M/V Docker’s Inn
Definitely go up the Barron River to Everglades City. Stay at the Rod and Gun Club (aka, the Sportsman’s Club). No credit cards; cash or personal checks only! Great, if small, local heritage museum. Truly a glimpse of Old Florida. More great dinghy exploring. Peg and Jim Healy aboard Sanctuary Currently at Charlotte Harbor, Punta Gorda, FL Monk 36 Hull #132
just spent two days at the Rod & Gun Club with a small group of boats from Pine Island. I would most definitely return here – docks were OK, view was great, the Club a place you have to experience at least once. Food was absolutely great! Showers were clean and had plenty of hot water. There are several other spots for breakfast or dinner within an easy walk. We carried 4′6″ all the way up to the Club with NO problems, even at a very low tide. Capt. Mike Smith
Check with the Rod and Gun Club in Everglade City (http://www.evergladesrodandgun.com/) about the Seafood festival. I believe it is usually held in early Feb and it is great fun. Also a good place to hop on an Airboat ride thru the Everglades. Joe Moran
I was there in April and June. As you follow the channel to Everglades City, a good anchorage is just north of FG 7. In this area just off the channel, before Russell Bay, you’ll find 7’ + with good holding. It’s deeper where the current flows through from Russell Pass, but the bottom is hard and holding is poor. Fishing boats come through early morning & evening, but it’s a minor problem, unless you are anchored in the pass. You are out of the way of traffic from Everglades City. It’s a good idea to plan your trip up to the Rod & Gun Club at slack tide. The current can be quite stiff. Turning around could be tricky, especially for underpowered boats. I don’t remember depths of less than 8’, but depth isn’t as much of an issue as current. There is plenty of seawall by the Club, but it is not well maintained. Good fenders are in order, as well as good dock & spring lines. There are some power stations along the wall, but several are not operational. The Club is interesting to see and is very “Old Florida.” Food was good, but not spectacular. It’s a good place for lunch and having a beer on the porch is very enjoyable. There is no place to buy fuel that I have been able to find, but there are a few small seafood places along the river as you proceed past the Club. If you anchor down by Russell Bay, it’s a fun dinghy trip up the river to the Rod & Gun Club. If you can’t get your dink on plane, it will be a long, slow ride against the current! Jake Dye
Everglades City was fun for a day or two as we biked about from our position alongside the Rod and Gun Club seawall. The Rod & Gun Club itself has a long ways to go in the management of their seawall moorings. About ten cruising sized boats can fit comfortably alongside, and clubs from the Sarasota area south like to come down here during to cool no-bug months of March/ April. What with being a bit isolated, the R&G Club is a bit prone to having clubs show up on a “flexible” schedule; although the two clubs we saw showed up on time. Anyway, the staff there works three shifts and the pass-down is not very good between shifts. They do not monitor a radio, and there was nobody to assist in mooring when we showed up (that doesn’t bother me because I hate dock hands pulling and pushing when I have control of my own boat). We ended up extending our stay by two nights and when the second club showed up (we were not informed of this reservation) we were asked to vacate and told to talk to the other shift about a refund for the last night. Being immediately out of reliable cell contact the moment we left town, I will now rely on the US Mail to carry my request for refund. Before we vacated our spot, we were offered a temporary spot with no power and told we could remain there if they could not fit us into a powered spot after the boat club got settled. After getting two 42-foot boats moved to this location (it was high tide – the ONLY time to move a 4.5-foot draft boat around), I sounded around and found that we had about 6 inches under us and 2 feet of tide due to lower in the next few hours. We had no time to dicker and promptly left for anchorage six miles away. I am not pissed off or trying to paint a negative picture of the R&G Club (but don’t eat there). We’ll use them again if we ever pass this way again (you have to – they are the only mooring in town, anchorage is way off downstream), but you need to be prepared to deal with a “marina” way down the list from something like Marina Jack in Sarasota. It’s part of their charm. It appears that if we had been able to predict our travels and made reservations before the boat clubs (over two months ago) we would have had prior claim to our spot, no matter how many boat clubs came in. As for us, we are just as happy to be able to move on safely despite running through an area with small craft warnings. Rich Gano CALYPSO
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